Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1887-05-13


-, nor do l.. said Whit,Gn, abotit
rs mnch surprised as before Here
hold the lantern, while Iced them,
said TO him. He took the FORK, pitch
ed the hay over the girt, ieiid .llstrlou-
ted it to the waiting cattle we wen,
out. closed the door IA silence, ana
moved away. There! there, pom
YOU here imp exclaimed John. 4
iauphed in a make as Il way, the
best | could do. tl.o't ] did hear
him. and continued to till some RODS
away.
II told Whitlan to hold his tongue
for his own sake as we'll as for the sake
of our neighbors. Nobody would De
lieve he had seen or heard anything
and it would only annoy the family
/ don't think he did for some timeaft-
err.
"Weli, the boys themselves, with
some OF their cousins-who came TO
STAY with them-did the chores there
or undertook to. the next night.
They heard the voice, saw the lmpish
figure, ran back to the house, sent
over to me, and with my lantern !
went over. 1t was a worse time thah
on the first night-the night of the
tradegy. OF course, when l went, IL
was still and nothing could be seen.
| tried TO explain it away, us mere
widespread illusion. amounting to a
delusion. and such ! have always re-
garded it, and paciied them for the
time. Wei, it was the same the next
night. and the next. ] told them they
had for the time better remove the
cattle and not use the barn, Tor the
ghost had now taken such hold oi
them that there would be no other
way. | feared.
"Thar was the BEGINNING OF 1T.
Everything was right in the morning,
during the day. all day, till the APP
proach of right, then the calls began,
and when the inside was dusky with
oncoming night, men fancied they saw
the shapless form. LIGHT up and 1t
vanished with the shadows, nor was
the voice heard when any one was III
the barn. Go out, close the door, and
it began again. Sometimes, when one
left, he first thing was Il low, sucker
ing laugh. Well it was all over from
that night 1t got out--the neighhors
came, ill far and near there was eX-
citement--it cot into the papers.
Once in IL while one came who could
neither see nor hear anything. Final
Iy the season grew warm the cattle
were changed to sheds elsewhere, bu6lt
made no difference with the thing,
whatever it was, something or moth
ing, that remained. Those who want
ed it could always find it, at twilight,
could hear it, seem to see 1t in the
dusk. Strike a light and it was not
there.
N'They used the barn tha5 summer,
but never after much. \ new house
was built further away. The frost
finally upset the underpinins at one
corner, which fell down a little.
Weeds grew rank about it; finally
trees came up around it. Folks had
fancy for pines and funeral ever
greens at an early dav, and there was
Il clump of these that quite cut he
old barn off from the Old house. A
thicket OF wild plums from one orig
inally planted grew up, tall and thick,
between it and the road. Naples,
beeches, sprlng up. The swallows
ceased to build in ii, the rats deserted
It, men ceased to speak OF it, no one
went near it, and so it in way died
off 1t IS there STILL
Then there was q talk about what
it was, it anything, among the old
boys, of whom the two from Michigan
had never visited the place.
''rhe fact is, said r., "a few thou
sand or hundred thousand years ago,
We were cave and river drift men, Dig
ger indians, III fact, from which the
white man never wholly escaped.
We've progressed only in strealls, Our
cave side, Digger part, at times pre-
dominates. Every one has a large
share OF primitive night. This thing
got itself started as g fungus of this
ground. Toadstools always come up
in the night. The first we know OF
them we find them fully grown in the
morning. This thing, once started.
lived on this shady, damp, and for all
foolishness, rich human soil"
Dan agreed with him in the main,
though both admitted that they had
heard the voice. Capt. John differed
with them. Monroe was undecided;
said lie had some OF the soil in which
toadstools might grow. Theo said
that the weight of evidence was in ia
vor OF some unusual visitation, and
wished he had been there in the day of
it.
"Oh, it is as much there now rs it
ever was" said Il. am bet hay
stock against new version OF the Old
Testament that ii we 90 there now
you'll hear the catCle calls, or think
yon do. This is the very witching
hour and the very season for it,"
Done" cried Theo. Let us 60,
boys"
1t was agreed 10 at once. The ket-
ties were filled with cold sap, the fire
pulled away so that no hacm might
occur to the partly reduced syrup, and
the party moved toward the open
ground.
"Your wager" said Dan to r., "is
hardly fair. II Theodore denies hear
ing or seeing, you lose
"Oh, YOU can trust u Seven Day
Baptist called out William, which
provoked & small laugh.
Its just the night for ghosts" said
Capt. John, looking about.
He was right. The moon in it's sec
ond quarter furnished all the light.
The sky was llecked with small, high
up, slow moving clonds, and to o fancy
quickened by the ecrie tale Just told,
the air seemed filled with fitting shad-
ows and phantoms. 1.-The chances
are all against me- sand Theo. who
mad Joined iii the small laugh, recur-